Thursday, February 28, 2013

Power (The Descendant Trilogy #1)
By Theresa Jones
Released:
eBook provided by the Author for honest review,

The Blurb: Thousands of years
after the battle between the angels, when Lucifer was defeated by Michael in
the Heavens, the war is still being fought on Earth by the humans who have
their Power, the Angel’s Power.

Allison Stevens is a
21 year old single mother who gets thrown into the middle of this battle when
Damien, the Leader of the Rising, decides to hunt her down and kill her because
he fears she is the descendant prophesied to save the world.

David, a member of the
Order, takes Allison under his wing in order to show her the ropes, and
hopefully groom her into being the one they have been waiting for. The only
problem is that they start to grow more attached than a teacher/student
relationship should allow.

But that isn’t all.
Damien wants to open the Seven Seals and bring about the apocalypse and it’s up
to Allison to not only save herself and her family, but save the world, all
while trying to keep her heart from breaking.

No problem… right?

POWER is the first
book in a New Adult (Mature YA) Paranormal Romance Trilogy and is the debut
novel for author Theresa M Jones

Jenny's Review:

First of all, isn't that cover gorgeous? Love it!

What a wonderful start to what I can only imagine is going to be a great series. I must say I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading Power. Angel power? I can dig it. One girl to save the world while trying to figure out her own heart? This had to have been written with my tastes in mind. 21 year old single mother? Hold up, say what? Now we're stepping out of my typical territory. New Adult is the, pardon the epic pun-fail, 'new' big thing, but it's not something I've really had the urge to read. But when I was approached by the author about reviewing Power, I figured what the heck, and I'm glad I did.
I really liked the overall idea of Power. One girl, a descendant, could be the key stopping the ultimate war of good vs evil. Sounds like the makings to a great book right? Each person who has power is a descendant from atleast on of the nine Primitus, or women who were chosen because of their virtue and given power from the angel Michael. The actual power that people have is really neat, it's like this visible energy and each person has their own color. It kind of reminds me of show Dragonball Z with the whole powering up. I know, I pulled that COMPLETELY out of left field. But there's just something about the imagery of being engulfed in this colorful Power. Kinda beautiful. Every person had their own gifts be it mind reading, telekinesis or healing, on top of having this power. And I don't think I'm explaining it all to well, but trust me it's pretty cool how Allison uses her power in battle to invade people's minds.
The point of view switches through out the story though the main focus is on Allison. While sometimes this can throw me off in a story, I did enjoy it here and getting to know other characters a little better. Believe it or not, one of my favorites was seeing inside Damien's head. Damien is our villain here, and how often do you get to peak inside the villain's head? At one point he's talking, and he just starts thinking how much he loves his voice. Narcissist? Um yeah, I'd say so. But I loved it. Sometimes you just need a bad guy and not someone who is simple bad because of their logical intentions.
I really only had two issues while reading Power. The first being that it did take me a bit to really get involved with the story. Yeah, there were several scenes that caught my attention and kept me going, like the first time Allison releases her Power, but it wasn't until about half way through that Power and I really clicked.
The second is really more just my personal reading preference than anything else. I prefer to be shown things instead of just told how they happened. I love dialogue and seeing characters reactions. I feel like I missed out on what could have been some really great scenes because the character who was telling the story at the time simply said this is how it was handled and this is what the other people did in response. I think because of this I didn't fall in love with the characters as much as I could have and at times it causes the story to come off as wordy.
I did appreciate the relationship between David and Allison. One of
the main reasons I steer clear of anything where the MC is over than 19
is because it's usually about Lust bunnies getting it on, on any
available flat surface. Don't worry, there are a few moments between the two that heat up the page.
Over all, Power is a fantastic debut and I'm definitely interested in seeing what's in store for Allison and Sammy and company.

About the Author:
Theresa M Jones is just a regular small town, Texas girl. When she isn't at work at a local Medical Equipment provider,you can find her at home with her husband and two beautiful (and rambunctious) kiddos.
In her spare time- as if there ever was such a thing as "spare time" - she reads and reviews books on her book blog, and writes paranormal romance novels.
POWER (The Descendent Trilogy #1) is her debut New Adult (Mature YA) Paranormal Romance novel.

Friday, December 21, 2012

Seventeen-year-old Florence Waverly is put of her depth. Literally. Kidnapped and taken below the waves to the mer world of Niemela, she is the ultimate gift for merman Prince Kiren: a human familiar tied to his side. But nothing is what it seems amid the beauty and danger of a dark ocean.
Every Niemelan has a role to plat, from the mermaids who weave towers out of kelp to the warriors who fight sea monsters. But in trying to survive, Florence will end up in the middle of a war between two brothers: Kiren, the charmer inexplicably drawn to both her and the monsters; and Rolan, the loner who has been pushing her away since the day they met. But in order to take a stand- and find out where she belongs- Florence will have to risk is all, her heart... and her very soul.

I must admit I was a little apprehensive about reading Florence.I've on;y read maybe two other books about mermaids before reading this one and I had no idea what to expect. How are the mermaids going to be portrayed? Will this hold true to how I see mermaids or will it bash my child heart? And how the heck is a human going to survive in this underwater world among mermaids??
But all my worrying was unnecessary because Florence was actually pretty great. It's one of the books that you just love and you can't really put your finger on why. You just do. But I guess that doesn't make for a very helpful review does it?
I think one of the things I liked most about Florence was the world in general. It's just really neat from the protective dome made out of jelly fish to a giant sea anemone thing that hugs everyone while they sleep. Oh! And underwater volcanoes! It was just really neat to see how everything at the bottom of the ocean was woven together to create this world that is rather similar to our own. Even the animals had a place in it all. There's this understanding and harmony between the Niemelans and the animals, it was
I loved how the Niemelans themselves were described. They're so colorful. They not just humans with fish tails slapped on where legs should be.
I know I've gone on about the world of Niemela, but the story is great too, I promise. I love when characters find their niche in unexpected places. While Rolan may have told her several times that every Niemelan must have a role to play and she spent a good part of the book still finding her role, to me it felt like she really did fit in more in this underwater world than she did back on the surface. She adapts quickly and excels at little things that as a human she shouldn't be able to do. I really did spend most of the book expecting Florence to sprout a tail.
There was very little I didn't like about the book, if anything at all. I was a little confused on what a familiar actually is, but I may have missed the explanation and it really isn't big enough to take away from the story at all.
Over all I definitely recommend Florence if you're looking for a "fish out of water" or uh, human off land? type of read. (Yeah that was a horrible joke...) And after the ending I'm certainly looking forward to seeing what's in store for everyone in the sequel.

With the haunting at Rosewood far behind her, Ruby thinks life with Zach will now be perfect but she couldn't be more wrong. In reality, her problems have just begun. As the season changes, so does everything else. Zach's behavior takes a disturbing turn, classmates unleash a new band of torture, and new friends become new enemies. Worst of all, Rita unveils a startling revelation about the summer's events -Ruby's close brush with death may have opened her up to the other side. Now knowing that what happened over the summer could be just the beginning of a very long battle with the supernatural, Ruby is faced with a tough decision. Should she reveal this fact to Zach or do what she swore she would never do again -lie? The mounting stress has devastation effects on Ruby -or is something else that cause? Paranormal activity in the school creates more danger for Ruby and Zach than she ever imagined possible. Their love is tested in more ways than one as Ruby faces The Phantoms of Fall.

Holy Raging Teenage Hormones Batman! But I'll get to that later....

So, Phantoms of Fall picks up not too long after Shades of Summer. Just when Ruby and Zach think they have nothing left to worry about and they get to have a normal relationship things start to fall apart. Ruby discovers the girl's locker room at school is haunted, Zach has become possessive and angry, attacking any guy who even looks at Ruby, Rita reveals that Ruby will never escape ghosts which could lead to the end of her and Zach's relationship, that is if Zach's witchy ex-girlfriend doesn't break them up first.

Like the first book, I was able to devour this book fairly quickly. There's quite a bit to like here. The ghost's past and Ruby's present once again parallel each other and I always like when that happens. By the end of the book, Ruby is practically reliving what the ghost went through almost as if she's possessed. People get pushed, someone falls down the stairs, and Ruby ends up showering in blood (course she only thinks its blood) Yay, for paranormal activity!
But it's not just the paranormal that plagues Ruby. There's trouble in paradise! Misty is stepping up her game in trying to get Zach back for herself using Ruby's insecurities for her benefit. Really, what's high school without the mean girl? And on top of that Zach develops this random angry possessive streak. He seriously blows a gasket when a guy jokingly hits on Ruby and she wants none of that. Good Girl! Despite wanting to smack him, I rather liked this new development in Zach. It makes him less perfect, which is how he's described by Ruby. A lot. After the way emotionally intense relationship they had in Shades of Summer I was happy to see Ruby so conflicted trying to decipher Zach's actions against his words while trying to figure out her own feelings and hormones.
Unfortunately, despite Zach's outbursts and Ruby's secrecy these two are still so intensely in love in wears on me. I'm not opposed to them being love. No, let them be in love. That's great. But their relationship is still just so intense. I wish I had a better word to describe it. When they're together somehow they always manage to express their undying devotion to each other. And Ruby is on ball of raging teen hormones. She wants Zach bad, like can't think of anything else bad, and we get a peak inside Zach's brain for a chapter and he's right there on the same wave length. It got to be so much it covered up everything else that was going on at times. I just want to grab them by their chins and say, "You're teenagers.
Slow. Your. Roll!" Is that the adult in me talking? Yeah, maybe. But I
like to believe teenagers aren't as completely sex crazed and ooey-gooey
in love as these two. Maybe I'm just naive.
Over all, it was a good read, you just have to dig it out from under the tidal wave that is Zach and Ruby's Love (or lack there of) life. I am interested to see where the story goes because Oh my! What a cliff hanger!

Haven't read Shades of Summer yet? Check out my review and be sure to enter for your chance to win a copy of both Shades of Summer and Phantoms of Fall over on our Indie Monday post with Joy Elbel.

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Pia has grown up in a
secret laboratory hidden deep in the Amazon rain forest. She was raised
by a team of scientists who have created her to be the start of a new
immortal race. But on the night of her seventeenth birthday, Pia
discovers a hole in the electric fence that surrounds her sterile
home--and sneaks outside the compound for the first time in her life.

Free in the jungle, Pia meets Eio, a boy from a nearby village.
Together, they embark on a race against time to discover the truth about
Pia's origin--a truth with deadly consequences that will change their
lives forever.

Origin is a beautifully told, shocking new way to look at an age-old desire: to live forever, no matter the cost.

Likes:
What a pleasant surprise this book turned out to be. From a book that I thought would be a lovey book with some sci-fi tossed in, this was the opposite of it. This book is heavy on the sci-fi with some "non-overbearing" love elements to it. If you know me, I'm not much into all that lovey gooey stuff in my books. I don't mind a romance to be present but I do not like books where that is all it is centered around. This book is just that and it does it well. I love the main character. Pia is one of my favorite type of characters. The type of character that discovers the world for the first time at an older age. Kind of like Quorra from Tron Legacy or Rapunzel from Tangled. Stuck in a place locked out from the real world only hearing pieces of what that real world is like. They are fun and I love to watch them discover things that are old to an every day human being but very new to them.

"You know Jules Verne? What's he like?"

Another favorite part of this book was that the whole story was one big conspiracy. Boy, I love me some conspiracies. Hiding the truth for the so-called "greater good" of life. Making things that certain people want them to be and not how they should be by just leaving well enough alone. It always makes out for a better, more sinister villain. Those are the best kind.

Dislikes:
Okay, so, you could get after me again for this dislike section. I don't really have any dislikes again. There are some names of certain beings in the story that can get confusing at times but that was more certainly my fault and not the story. The names can be tough to pronounce and remember in your head but it's part of the tribe of people that are encountered in the story.

Who would I recommend this to:
If you are like me and believe that sci-fi is on the rise in YA and you are excited about things like that, read this book. If you LOVE conspiracies like any sane human being should, you will love this book. If you like stories with a real plot tossed in with a small bit of romance, this is also for you too. It is a great story than I think deserves plenty of praise in 2012.

P.SI have to add this on this review as a "Thank you" to my quite epic sister-in-law for getting me this book and having it signed by the wonderful Jessica Khoury at the Austin Teen Book Fair. Oh yeah, I also loved reading this book because it had a wonderful new book smell. Just saiyen. :D

Thursday, November 29, 2012

Love ... the only thing more powerful than death.
Seventeen year old Ruby Matthews spent the last year of her life crippled by guilt and grief over the death of longtime friend and boyfriend Seeley "Lee" Lucas. Feeling that a change of scenery might snap her back to reality, Ruby's father moves the family out of their home in the Philadelphia suburb of Trinity and into the small town life in Charlotte's Grove, Pennsylvania. Life is better here for Ruby- she quickly makes friends with handsome Zach Mason and his twin sister Rachel. Every moment spent with Zach makes life and love seem possible again. But passion comes with a high price. Things are not what they seem at Rosewood, the Matthews' historic plantation style home. Paranormal activity at the mansion intensifies as she draws closer to Zach . Is it Lee- coming back to claim her hear and maybe even her soul? Or is it something more sinister hiding in the shadows? Ruby must delve into her own past and the history of Rosewood to solve the mystery before it's too late.

It's no secret I love a good ghost story. It's just something about the paranormal that grabs at my attention and says hey look at me! Read me! Looove me!
So of course, when I was approached about reviewing this book I jumped at it. And I'm very glad I did.

This book sucked me in from the beginning. I loved it. I laughed and face-palmed several times. I think it's great when a story can evoke a physical response from its reader. It also put me to sleep, in a good way. It was one of those times where you're reading and before you know it it's 5am and you're like "oh crap!" because if you don't go to sleep soon you'll get caught (in this case by my husband who will give me "the eyes" that make me feel guilty for choosing reading over required sleep), and then you're brain just kinda clicks off. Yeah...

One of my favorite things about this book was the character Rachel. I would love to have a best friend like her. She is like this perky, nerdy cheerleader person who would pull these references out of left field that made me what to reach through the page and give her a fist-bump. Also, the house that Ruby moves into is pretty epic. Definitely a place I would love to see in real life. It reminded a little of Beast's castle from Beauty and the Beast except, well plantation style.
I love connections made within stories, whether it be dates or common names/name meanings or similar order of events. I like how things can all be tied back and connected to something. And that's what we get here. History meet present. Now be friends and mingle! Love it! It's like a game almost, picking out all the connections and trying to guess what's going to happen and what ghost is who. It probably has a lot to do with why I like ghost stories in the first place. History.

My main complaint however, is with Zach and Ruby's relationship. It became too ... intense, too fast for my taste. I'm not talking physically intense, but emotionally. Ok... I'm all for love at first sight. It's a great thing to believe in and can make for a great story. And I loved watching Ruby fumble over herself whenever she ran into Zach. It made her so personable. And just adored seeing how confident Zach was about his feelings for Ruby even when he just laid eyes on her. He knew what he wanted and it was great how you could just see it even when Ruby didn't believe it and she's the one telling the story. That being said, when the two did become an item it evolved into something way intense, like bypass awkward first kiss and hello I would die for you, you complete me. Their love also felt a little insecure for how strong it was. The last third of the book they were constantly repeating their devotion to each other. I got to the point where I wanted to take them by the hands and say, "You love each other. I get it. Big circle of soul completion going on. Can we focus on gtfo-ing the ghost so you two can have big smoochies?"

Over all, an enjoyable read and if you like ghosts and romance you should check it out. I know I'm pretty curious about the sequel now after a little teaser at the end of the book.

Thursday, November 8, 2012

The Violet Fox
by Clare Marshall
Recieved an e-copy of the book for an honest review.

Book Blurb from Faery Ink Press

Run.
That’s what instinct told me.
But in order to save the secrets of my people
and to protect my brother
I have to become the enemy.

There are two kinds of people in the land of Marlenia.
The Marlenians, who live on the surface,
and the Freetors, who are forced to live underground.
The war between them ended two hundred years ago, but the Freetors
still fight for the right to live under the sun. Fifteen-year-old Kiera
Driscoll embodies the Freetors’ hopes as the Violet Fox. In a violet
cape and mask, she sneaks around Marlenia City stealing food and freeing
her people from slavery.
Then the Elders task her with a secret mission: retrieve a stolen
tome that contains the secrets of Freetor magic, something the
Marlenians both fear and covet. Kiera must disguise herself as a
noblewoman and infiltrate the Marlenian castle before the Freetor-hating
Advisor finds out her real identity, before her brother is imprisoned
because of the secrets he hides, and before she falls any more in love
with the prince she’s supposed to hate.
More is happening in the castle than she realizes, and Kiera is faced
with a difficult choice. Will she be loyal to her people and their
fight for freedom, or will she be loyal to her heart?

I must admit I had no idea what to expect when I started reading this book. I don't usually get into to fantasy because the story lines get confusing and proper nouns and key words are usually way too complicated to pronounce let alone keep straight without a master key while reading. But I was intrigued by the summary none-the-less.

Over all, I very much enjoyed this book. To me it felt like a nice mix between Robin Hood and Cinderella, more specifically the Ever After version with Drew Barrymore (There's a sweet little scene, if you've seen Ever After you'll catch it).
Now that being said, The Violet Fox and I didn't start off as the best of friends. No, ours was more of a progressive love. . .

I went from, "Stealing to fede the hungry, that's nice." *drums fingers on table* "Whoa! Chiquita has got some moves. Wait. She just did what to who? Feisty." to, "Hm not afraid to tell royalty where they can stick it and yet make it sound polite. You little southern charmer you. Bless your heart. We can be friends."
and ended with a big, "HOLD THE PHONE! He's really- and she- but then this lady- and he and her- but Rordan- and she's gonna- what did he just say?!"
True Story.

I love it when a book keeps me far enough in the loop that I know where I'm going, but still manages to surprise me with a few twists towards the end and that's definitely what we get here.

Kiera is a wonderful character even if she is a bit too reckless. She kept me on my toes because I kept expecting her to get caught. At times though she did come off a bit arrogant. I can understand wanting to show off and best the Marlenian guards day after day, but even Batman knows when to hold back.

I really liked how see Kiera grow through out the story. She starts off as this cape crusader doing what was right for her people, but learns that its not all sunshine and lollipops for the other side either. I also liked Keira and Keegan's relationship. It was a little fast, but sweet. I definitely smiled and giggled more than once, though I really wanted to pull Keegan off to the side at the end and say, "You do remember that time in chapter 1 when you had like 4 lips because of this girl right? You do? Ok, good just checking. Heart you both!"

Over all I definitely recommend The Violet Fox if you're looking for a fun, fast paced read.

---

Author Bio:

Clare Marshall grew up in rural Nova Scotia with
very little television and dial up internet, and yet, she turned out
okay. She has a combined honours degree in journalism and psychology
from the University of King’s College, and is a graduate from Humber
College’s Creative Book Publishing Program. She founded Woulds &
Shoulds Editing and Design in 2010 for self-published authors and
businesses looking for quality editing and design services. She enjoys
publishing books through her publishing imprint, Faery Ink Press, and
released her first novella, Within in 2011. When she’s not writing, she
enjoys playing the fiddle and making silly noises at cats.

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Reeling from the tragic
events of Dust & Decay, Benny Imura and his friends plunge deep into
the zombie-infested wastelands of the great Rot & Ruin. Benny, Nix,
Lilah and Chong journey through a fierce wilderness that was once
America, searching for the jet they saw in the skies months ago. If that
jet exists then humanity itself must have survived…somewhere. Finding
it is their best hope for having a future and a life worth living.

But
the Ruin is far more dangerous than any of them can imagine. They are
hunted by fierce animals escaped from zoos and circuses. They must raid
zombie-infested towns for food and medical supplies. They discover the
very real truth in the old saying: In the Rot & Ruin…everything
wants to kill you.

And what is happening to the zombies? Swarms
of them are coming from the east, devouring everything in their paths.
These zoms are different. Faster, smarter, infinitely more dangerous.
Has the zombie plague mutated, or is there something far more sinister
behind this new invasion of the living dead?

In Flesh & Bone,
Benny Imura, Nix Riley, Lou Chong and Lilah the Lost Girl are pitted
against dangers greater than anything they've ever faced. To survive,
each of them must rise to become the warriors Tom trained them to be.

Likes: OH!! If anyone has caught on by now, I love me some Jonathan Maberry. I just love his writing and his ability to expertly tell a story. This book is no exception. It is just as great as the previous two in the series. What it makes up for in the loss of a certain favorite character of mine (I'm still sad about that) it makes up for with one of my favorite type of villains. That's right, there are multiple of them. My favorite thing about those villains is that they truly believe what they are doing is for the greater good of man-kind. No matter how evil and vile everyone else around them believes they are, they live their lives thinking they are doing the right thing. They even make it into some kind of religion. One that they believe they are doing the handywork of god and it is how god wants things to be. Like I mentioned before, I'm still not happy with my favorite character being gone but Mr. Maberry makes up for it by adding Joe Ledger into the story. If you don't know of Joe Ledger, see my review of Patient Zero. He is a great character and he comes along in this book at the right time and even explains on what the heck is going on a little bit in what caused the event that made the world the "Rot & Ruin."Dislikes: You know, I really had to stop and think about this one so that I wouldn't be able to use my previous "Maberry" cop out and say that I didn't dislike a thing in this book. Didn't want to make that excuse old and used. So after much thought, I did think of some small gripes. As much as I praised the villains in this story and how I loved their purpose in the story, there were times where they were pretty annoying. It seemed like as soon as things calmed down and the characters were getting somewhere, they would pop up again. At times I was like, "Holy crap! Let these kids do something besides worrying about you crazies every five minutes!" My last small gripe is not really a gripe at all. It was more of me being a whiny baby and not accepting the fact that my favorite character is gone and is not coming back. Heck, even the characters in the story are having the same issue. Especially Benny. Oh Benny, I know your pain.Who would I recommend this to: I would only recommend this wonderful book to the folks who have read the first two. If you haven't read the first two, don't you dare touch this yet. You will spoil such a great story. If you haven't read the first two, seriously, what the heck is wrong with you? It's a wonderful story with great characters and a wonderful different take of zombies in a very dystopian America. I have reviewed the first two and you can check them out here and here.

Faces behind the screen

Welcome fellow Book Nerds! Thanks for stopping by. We're a Husband & Wife book blogging team who love to ramble about all things bookish and somethings not, but all nerdy. Our bookish pleasure lie mainly in YA Fiction though we've been known to stray for a good story. If you're an Author or Publisher with a request please stop by our Policies page. And remember Red = Dead in Tunic fashion.